SMS Guys - Systems Management Server Blog

2008-04-11T15:42:00.000-04:00

Just a heads up to whomever may find this blog...Phil and I have both moved on in our careers and the updates to this blog have ceased. Phil has shifted focus more to the application developement side of IT, I have shifted focus to the implementation of the System Center products.I will be maintaining a new blog focused primarily on System Center Operations Manager & Configuration Manager, and to

Query: Build collection to exclude members of another collection

2006-12-13T11:10:00.000-05:00

This has proven to be quite useful. Here's how to create a query-based collection that will exclude members of another collection:1. Create a collection that will contain all clients to be excluded from another collection (we'll call it 'ExclusionsCollection' for this example.)2. Once you have that, go into the Collections table in the SMS SQL database and find the row that contains '

SMS: Useful...stuff

2006-10-06T12:07:00.000-04:00

Here's a few useful things to note when deploying packages:- Use "CMD.EXE /C" in front your command to run it from the command prompt.- Need to apply a patch to an application that you are deploying, but need a reboot in between? Try creating 2 advertisements, one for the main application and one for the patch. Set the main application install to run as soon as possible and set the patch to

Microsoft will police licenses through SMS

2006-10-05T17:09:00.000-04:00

Microsoft is beefing up policing for Windows licensing after going back to the drawing board on its asset management strategy.Upcoming editions of Systems Management Server (SMS) will introduce metadata and workflow tools and capabilities for management of software licenses in a three-phase plan....Read the full article here.

WMI - Scripting

2006-09-30T18:03:00.000-04:00

In my previous entry, WMI - Introduction I covered the basics of how WMI worked and how to write a simple script utilizing WMI technology. Today we will cover some more in depth information regarding WMI and scripting, along with some more advanced WMI queries.WMI ClassesIntroudction to Object-Oriented Programming & ClassesThe concept of classes within WMI is borrowed from object-oriented

Welcome to Paul

2006-09-06T16:36:00.000-04:00

Everyone, say hello to Paul Haustein!Paul is going to be contributing to the SMS Guys blog in the future and will be bringing to the to the table a great deal of experience. Here is some more information about Paul:Paul Haustein Currently works as a SMS 2003 administrator for a government agency, where he is currently the one stop shop for all things SMS. Paul’s experience starts from the ground

How best to handle Microsoft re-release of security patches

2006-09-06T15:26:00.000-04:00

From time to time, some security patches need adjustments to correct issues that have been discovered. Microsoft attempts to resolve this by releasing a new version of an existing patch or by releasing a new patch the replaces a previous patch.To date, I have encountered 4 different ways that a re-release patch can show up in the DSUW.1. Direct replacement.What this means is that the re-release

Reference: Setup.exe commands

2006-08-28T15:18:00.000-04:00

Setup.exe Command Line ParametersSpecial Installation Modes * /a : Administrative installation * /j : Advertise mode * /x : Uninstall mode * /uninst : Uninstall product (InstallScript MSI projects only)Silent Installations * /p : Specify password * /r : Record mode (InstallScript MSI projects only) * /s : Silent mode * /f1 : Specify alternative response file name (InstallScript

Reference: Windows Installer command line

2006-08-28T12:11:00.000-04:00

The following is a list of the command lines that can be used with an .msi installation per MicrosoftMsiexec - Provides the means to install, modify, and perform operations on Windows Installer from the command line.To install or configure a productSyntaxmsiexec /i {package|ProductCode}Parameters/i : Installs or configures a product.ExamplesTo install a product from A:\Example.msi, type:msiexec /

Script Quickie - Search for a file type

2006-08-24T22:11:00.000-04:00

There was recently a post on a popular forum site requesting a script to search a computer for all files with the .exe extension. Simple I thought! I can just query WMI to retrieve a listing of these files. Here's a quick script I wrote to do just that. Note that I queried the CIM_DataFile class to find these files. Try experimenting with the script to see how else you can search for different

WMI - Introduction

2006-08-22T22:40:00.000-04:00

What is WMI?Windows Management Instrumentation, or WMI, is Microsoft's implementation of the Web Based Enterprise Management (WBEM) standard set forth by the Distributed Management Task Force (DMTF). OK, that was a mouth full. In simpler terms, WMI allows us to access system resources on a Windows system remotely by utilizing a common set of services, providers and classes. This means that now we

Useful Query - All machines that do NOT have specific file

2006-08-22T12:24:00.000-04:00

Handy query that will show all machines that are missing a certain .exe file. Replace 'file.exe' with the filename of your choice:select SMS_R_System.NetbiosName, SMS_G_System_SoftwareFile.FileNamefrom SMS_R_Systeminner join SMS_G_System_SoftwareFileon SMS_G_System_SoftwareFile.ResourceID = SMS_R_System.ResourceIdwhere

SMS Scripting - Introduction

2006-08-15T13:40:00.000-04:00

SMS is a highly customizable system, you will quickly find out that the interface provided through the SMS Administrator Console is just the beginning. By extending SMS through custom scripts you will give yourself greater flexibility and find yourself spending less time doing repetitive task and more time managing your infrastructure. WMI provides the entry point to the SMS server, you can write

MSI package deployment overview: How-To and How-Not-To

2006-08-15T11:09:00.000-04:00

Windows Installer. A prime example of a great idea that, when properly implemented makes life much easier. Yet more often than not this great idea is implemented in a less than perfect manner, and rage mixed with sorrow follow shortly thereafter.I frequently get questions on how to deploy MSI-based applications into production, as well as how to patch those apps that are already deployed.

Welcome to SMS Guys

2006-08-15T10:05:00.000-04:00

Welcome to the SMS Guys Systems Management Server Blog. Here you will find news, articles, tips and more on topics relating to SMS.About the AuthorsPhilip Streck - A computer consultant from Akron Ohio, Philip is currently on contract as an Application Packager working with SMS and GPO deploys. In the past Philip has worked as an application developer on multiple platforms including; Windows,